Faculty reacts to ABOR financial oversight report

TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — At Gov. Katie Hobbs' request, the Arizona Board of Regents (ABOR) delivered a plan for enhanced financial oversight at the University of Arizona.

"The Board today submitted a plan to chart the path forward to strong financial health at the University of Arizona," said ABOR Chair Fred Duval in the public portion of Friday's Regents meeting.

According to the report, the initial budget actions include:

• Lower administrative costs, starting at the top
• Improve service and reduce costs through centralized administrative operations
• Increase revenue opportunities without increasing established tuition caps
• Eliminate duplication by implementing a unified approach

Duval encouraged members of the public and university community to read the report, which has been published online:

READ: ARIZONA BOARD OF REGENTS ENHANCED FINANCIAL OVERSIGHT REPORT

The Board's statement Friday answered questions, but some faculty still feel left in the dark.

“My understanding is that we are facing a 5% budget cut as RII as a whole. But we really haven't heard any concrete information from from higher ups at all,” says Maria Sohn Hasman, a faculty member at the U of A.

Last week, UA president Robert Robbins and interim CFO John Arnold said departments across the university would be expected to cut budgets anywhere from 5% to as much as 15%.

Sohn Hasman says her and her colleagues don't know what to expect.

“It's just at the point where I wake up every day wondering if it's the day where I'm gonna be notified that I'm laid off. And that's a really tough position to be in,” said Sohn Hasman.

In Friday's letter, the board says they will not be raising tuition.

"We must either cut costs or raise revenues. Cut overhead or raise tuition. That's it. If you aren't doing one, you're forcing the other. We've made it clear that we're not going to do that on the backs of students," said Duval.

The next major deadline is on Tuesday Feb. 20: Gov. Hobbs is asking UA and ABOR leaders for a report on the purchase of the University of Arizona Global Campus (UAGC). In her letter, Hobbs mentioned reports of conversations between campus leaders about the purchase of UAGC and the "risky nature" of the decision.